Revelations
by Mylinda Antoinette
Summary: During the infiltration of the Iselia ranch, the appearance of a not-so-strange woman sends shockwaves through the members of the group, and changes their journey in many ways. AU; pairings include Kranna, Colloyd, Sheelos, Regal/Alicia, and Genis/Presea.
1. The Rescue

Revelations  
By: Mylinda Antoinette

Summary: During the infiltration of the Iselia ranch, the appearance of a not-so-strange woman sends shockwaves through the members of the group, and changes their journey in many ways. AU; pairings include Kranna, Colloyd, Sheelos, Regal/Alicia, and Genis/Presea.

Author's Note: I just want to say that I know some of the details of the story aren't quite like they were in the game; for instance, I left out most of the scene between the guards, Lloyd, Colette, Chocolat, and the other host body. I did this simply for time's sake… you all should know already how that scene goes, and I see no reason to include it in this story, where it has no bearing on the story whatsoever. Also, because this story is an AU, some events will be different from how they are in the story, some will be mostly the same, and others may be left out completely and changed for different events. Just the same, I hope you will enjoy this story!

Also, I would like to thank my beta-reader, Twilight Scribe! Thanks for all your help to make this story what it is now, TS!

* * *

Chapter 1: The Rescue

Lloyd narrowly dodged the laser beam that issued from a lamp as it tried to swing over his head. He breathed a deep sigh of relief, then instantly had to duck and roll out of the way as another one swung his way. He knew that if he hit any of them, he would be badly burned. These lasers were far worse than the ones they'd had to deal with at the Renegades' Tethe'allan base. For one thing, these hallways were much narrower, so there was less moving room, and for another, these lasers were actually moving! At least the ones at the Renegades' base had stayed put!

Just as Lloyd made it past the last of the lasers en route to the room where he knew the Exsphere host bodies were being kept, he heard Genis cry out in pain.

"My arm!" the half-elven boy cried, biting his lip, trying hard not to cry and to resist the urge to grab his burned arm, knowing that would only make it hurt worse. Lloyd whirled around and saw that Genis had been caught by the laser lamp that he himself had just moved past.

"Genis!" he shouted, trying to get the boy's attention. However, Genis couldn't hear Lloyd through the pain of the burn, so he had to quickly reach out and grab Genis's hand, yanking him from the path of another laser just in time.

The rest of the group quickly caught up with them. Raine moved swiftly to kneel by Genis, who had passed out due to the pain and was now propped up against the wall, thanks to Lloyd. She gasped out of sympathy for her younger brother as she saw how badly the laser had scorched him... It looked like the burn went almost all the way to the bone! She looked up at the others, her eyes pained. "I can heal him, but I'll need some space and some time. We'd better be in the group to help the prisoners," she explained calmly, despite her intense worry for her brother.

"All right," Lloyd agreed calmly, glancing around at the others. "Then who will go with them?"

"I will go," Presea's soft voice interrupted. She quickly raised her ax to rest on her shoulder, as though she were ready to defend Genis, no matter what.

"I'll go too," Zelos interposed, grinning as he gripped the hilt of his sword. "My cute rosebud, my cool beauty, and the brat will need the Great Zelos to protect them with his flaming sword of judgment!"

Lloyd rolled his eyes, though he did so after he turned away so Zelos couldn't see. "All right then. You four stay here in the corridor while Colette, Kratos, Regal, and I dispatch the guards." He turned around again, kneeling next to Raine, who was holding the head of her staff over Genis's wound, concentrating on casting her spell to heal him. He rested a gentle hand on her shoulder, a movement that drew just enough of her attention that she was able to hear and remember what he said without losing her concentration on the spell. "When you've finished here, join us in the next room." Raine nodded her understanding before turning her attention back to the spell, pouring her energy and power into it to make sure it did its job well.

Lloyd stood and led the way into the chamber where he knew the captives would be, followed by Colette, then Kratos, and finally Regal, who insisted on trailing them to make sure that Kratos couldn't possibly betray them. Upon entering, they realized that something was wrong. All the cells were open and there were only two captives left in the room, trying to take care of two Desian guards. Lloyd and Colette recognized one of the two instantly.

"Chocolat!" Lloyd cried as the four party members rushed up to the Desians. It didn't take much to down the half-elves. They were only guards after all, nowhere near as skilled as other enemies the party had faced. The small group stepped over the bodies of the unconscious Desians to the captives, who told them that most of the captives had already escaped.

"When we heard you were coming, it seemed the perfect opportunity," the man in front of them explained. "Only the two of us are left, plus…" His voice trailed off as he spoke, and he looked down.

"Plus? Who else is left in this place?" Regal inquired, wanting to know who was in danger of being left behind.

The man exchanged a look with Chocolat; then he sighed. "I don't know all the details, but I've heard that long ago, a woman was taken from this room and transferred to another room in this base. It's a hidden, isolated room. I don't know much else. For all I know, she could be dead already," he explained.

"Oh, Lloyd, please, let's look for her," Colette begged, feeling sorry for this poor woman.

"I, too, would like to find this woman," Regal agreed.

"Well…" Lloyd began hesitantly; of course he wanted to find the woman too, but they had to hurry and shut down the mana reactor. At this moment, the remaining four of their group came in, though Genis looked a little unsteady and his arm was tightly bandaged. The answer to his dilemma was here. "Hey guys, we got some problems," he said, quickly filling them in on the situation at hand.

"I will go and find her," Raine promised, feeling some sympathy for this unknown woman's situation. "Zelos, Presea, and Genis, go on ahead with these two and make sure the other captives get out safely."

"All right, sis," Genis replied, his voice pained. He stiffly pulled his kendama from where he had stored it and led the way with Presea, with Chocolat and the other man following behind them and Zelos bringing up the rear.

"Good luck!" Lloyd called to Raine as he and the remaining three party members split off from her to go and deactivate the mana reactor.

"Thank you," Raine replied as she watched them leave, suddenly feeling mildly helpless. After all, she didn't know where to start looking. Then it hit her. "Of course! Why didn't I think of that before?" she thought, scolding herself as she hurried off to find a computer terminal.

* * *

Half an hour later, Raine was traveling down a dark hallway, referring back to the map she had memorized. This place was not on the map that she'd accessed through the computer terminal, and she was certain this was the way to the woman that the male prisoner had spoken of.

As she neared a turnoff, she peered around the next corner and saw two guards sitting thirty yards away at the end of the corridor, playing cards as they watched a door behind them. They hadn't sensed her presence yet, which gave Raine a definite advantage over them. She stepped back and began to mutter under her breath as she called up her magic before exclaiming in a loud whisper, "Ray!" For an instant, flashes of light lanced through the dim hallway and she heard loud grunts of pain as the light struck its targets, rendering them unconscious. She peeked back around the corner and saw that all was quiet. She moved carefully down the hall, finding the keys on the belt of one of the guards and using them to unlock the door.

As she opened the door, she heard a gasp and scurrying sounds, as though whoever was inside the room was trying to hide. She stepped carefully inside. "It's all right," she spoke gently to whoever was in there. "My name is Raine Sage, and I'm here to help you. I've come to get you out of here." Her eyes gradually adjusted to see a woman with two children, one who appeared to be a female a year or two older than Genis and another in her arms who was clearly just a baby. She walked slowly, cautiously to the woman and rested her hand on her arm. "Please, come with me. The other hosts have already escaped. We know someone, a dwarf, who may be able to remove that Exsphere of yours. Please..." she repeated softly, encouragingly.

The woman hesitated and gripped her baby tighter. "You are not human..." she whispered in fear, recognizing the telltale signs of elven blood in the woman before her. Raine sighed softly.

"That is correct. I am a half-elf. However, I am not in league with the Desians and I am not here to hurt you. If I were here to do that, I would not be wasting my time with otherwise meaningless chatter," she pointed out upon hearing the gasps of fear from the woman and girl. She held out a hand toward the woman as a gesture of peace. "Please," Raine repeated, "I am here to help."

The woman looked back and forth between the half-elf's face and the hand which she was holding out to her, trying to determine her general sincerity. At last she decided that there was no point in staying there to rot and that she and her children might at least be able to get out of that dark cell for a while. She took her daughter's hand and they walked past Raine, silently giving her their trust. Raine followed behind them, shutting the door and returning the keys to the watchman's belt. Raine moved in front of the three and, with her guidance, they began to move swiftly down the hallways, making their way back to the entrance.

"How did you know I was there?" the woman asked abruptly, breaking the silence they'd found themselves in. Her sudden speech startled Raine a bit, but she recovered quickly.

"One of the prisoners told my friends and me a story of a woman who had been taken from the main cell block and hidden away in a secret room in the ranch," she explained. "Our group leader, Lloyd, asked me to come and find you."

The woman started a bit at the mention of Lloyd's name, but then she resumed her hard composure. "I see," she replied.

They continued walking in silence for a while longer before Raine was seized by the need to learn more about this woman. "How long have you been locked up in that place?" she inquired.

"I'm not sure!" the woman bit back sharply. "I guess it's been more than ten years, but it's awfully hard to keep track of time in there. If you're asking for a specific length of time, I couldn't tell you."

Raine sighed. This woman had certainly led a hard life so far. "I see..." she finally said. "May I ask for your name?"

The woman hesitated. At first, she felt that it was none of this strange half-elf's business, but then she thought that this woman just might be able to help her locate her family. At last she sighed. "Anna," she replied. "My name is Anna Aurion."

* * *

Anna's alive! WOOT! If you want to join the Anna fanclub, please leave a note in your review saying you wish to join... I'll be starting a forum on here for it, and I may also decide to write fan chapters if freakyanimegal456 doesn't mind me borrowing that idea, just for fun! The first three Anna fans to join get to be moderators! XD

Also, if you want to be in a fan chapter, please leave a note with what you would like to see happen. Note that the events in the fan chapters will not always have an effect on the story! If I like something, I might make that one thing a part of the permanent storyline, but as a general rule, most of it will be just for fun and will be largely ignored for most of the story.

I hope to have Chapter 2 up in a week or two; just depends on how quickly I can write more of the story! Please be sure to leave a review!


	2. The Truth Unfolds

Author's Note: Sorry this took so long, but things have been crazy. Enjoy! Oh, and thanks to both Twilight Scribe and Cataclysmic Eclipse for helping me with serious revisions to this chapter!

* * *

Chapter 2: The Truth Unfolds

Raine froze in shock upon hearing the woman's name. Her last name… Aurion, she had said. Raine knew that this was Kratos' last name. Surely this woman couldn't be…

As they reached the entrance, the woman and girl squinted, unused to so much light. The baby had fallen asleep in Anna's arms on the way to the entrance. When the four entered into the courtyard of the ranch, Raine saw Kratos standing over the body of Forcystus, cleaning his blade, while Colette lay on the ground a short distance away, being tended to by Regal, Zelos, and Lloyd. Her thoughts instantly diverted from the mystery of Anna's last name, and she ran over to Colette's side. Though it appeared Colette was receiving plenty of attention, it couldn't hurt to see if another healer was needed. Raine received the story of what had happened from Lloyd, and she quickly determined that Colette should be taken somewhere to rest. Iselia, in her opinion was their best bet.

"But Raine, Lloyd and I can't go back there, remember?" Genis interjected.

"Yes, but Iselia is Colette's hometown. If we head there, then her family can tend to her," Raine explained. "Lloyd, will you get Kratos, please? We will need him to carry her to the village."

"Yes, Professor," Lloyd replied, standing. However, Kratos's angel senses heard it and he turned around, intending to walk over and collect Colette in his arms. Because of this, he and Lloyd both caught sight of the woman that Raine had rescued at the same time. They both froze instantly, millions of memories flooding their minds.

"Anna?!" Kratos exclaimed disbelievingly at the same moment that Lloyd shouted "Mom?!"

They both looked at each other as Anna slowly turned around disbelievingly. "Kratos?!" she exclaimed, unable to believe it was him. Then she saw Lloyd, and though she had not seen him in fourteen years, she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was, in fact, her long-lost son. "Lloyd… Lloyd, my baby!" she cried, running forward and throwing a free arm around the seventeen year old boy, who stood in shock for a moment before embracing her in return. "I can't believe it's you, Lloyd… I thought I'd never see you again…"

"I thought the same thing, Mom…" His voice choked up and a huge smile spread across his youthful face as he hugged her tightly. Then he looked up at Kratos, who had come to stand next to them. "Uh, Mom, I have a question for you… You seemed to know Kratos really well… Ah, how do you know him?" he asked, feeling very confused as to how his mother knew the angel.

Anna looked at her son, cocking her head in confusion. "W-What in the world...?" Then it clicked and she looked disbelievingly at Kratos. "You… You never told him?!" she exclaimed in disbelief.

"It never became necessary for him to know, and circumstances have changed since the last time you saw us," Kratos replied stoically. Anna rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"Good Goddess, Kratos, how could you keep something like that from him?!" she shouted angrily. Lloyd looked between the two with a confused glance.

"O…kay, now I'm _really_ confused," he said. "Will someone please tell me what is going on?" Anna walked closer to him and placed a hand on his arm.

"Lloyd, my name- my full name- is Anna Irving-Aurion," she explained in a gentle voice.

At first, Lloyd just stared at her, not understanding what she meant. Then it hit him, and his eyes widened as he backed up. "You… You mean that Kratos… Kratos is my…?"

"Yes, Lloyd," she replied calmly, moving closer to Kratos. "Kratos is my husband and your father."

"But… No, that can't be! I can't believe that! I refuse to believe that!" he shouted.

"Lloyd!" Anna said warningly, but Kratos laid a calming hand on her shoulder.

"I just won't believe that the man who betrayed me and my friends, the man who made Colette suffer for so long… I can't believe he's my dad!"

Zelos stood and walked toward Lloyd. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! What did you just say? Dude, don't disappoint me like that! Or have you been lying to us up until now? I thought you've always told us that stuff like status and race means nothing, that no matter what, your heart is the same!"

"Zelos…" Lloyd murmured, staring at him, surprised that Zelos was saying stuff like this.

"Don't let something like the identity of your old man shake you like that. No matter who he is, you're you, right?"

"You… Yeah, you're right, Zelos." Lloyd cast a grateful glance at the womanizing red-head, realizing that Zelos could be really wise sometimes. He walked around Zelos and up to Kratos. "I'll accept that you are my father, but I can't call you Dad."

"Lloyd! Whyever not?!" Anna exclaimed, clearly unhappy.

"Mom, do you even know what he did when he thought you and I had died fourteen years ago? He returned to Cruxis!" Lloyd explained to his mother. Anna glared at Kratos, causing the angel to shift a bit, as though he felt uncomfortable. "Kratos, I hate what you- what Cruxis does. Too many people have died for a dream of Yggdrasill's. Every life has meaning. No one should be born for the sole purpose of dying!"

"You… You are right, Lloyd," Kratos conceded. "And I am sorry for turning a blind eye to what Yggdrasill has been doing for all this time, but I…"

"I'm sorry to have to break this up," Raine interrupted, "but I feel we should leave here now before we are captured by any remaining Desians."

"I concur," Regal agreed, standing with the others.

"Let us take Colette to safety," Presea said softly.

Kratos stepped forward and lifted Colette easily. The others left ahead of him and Anna, giving them some privacy to speak. "If it was not you whom I killed so long ago, then who was it?" he inquired softly as soon as the others were out of earshot.

Anna looked down. "Actually, that _was_ me that you struck at."

Kratos walked in silence for a minute, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"While you were off fighting the Desians and after I had turned over custody of Lloyd to that dwarf, Dirk, Kvar showed up. He and his men took me back to the base, which is where I woke up and is the next thing I remember, since I passed out on the way back. They told me that they had healed me, and that they would restart the Angelus Project on me in a few months."

Her companion's eyes narrowed. It didn't make sense… "But why would they wait? Surely they would want to begin the project again as soon as possible, considering how long it would take for the project to complete itself."

Anna hesitated for a moment before she looked up at him. "By the time Kvar recaptured me, I had realized that I was going to have another child," she said softly. Kratos's eyes grew as big as dinner plates at this news and he stopped, turning to stare wide-eyed at her.

"But… why didn't you tell me?" he asked, concerned.

"Because I didn't think it was the right time. I had this feeling, deep down, that something was going to happen to me, and I knew that if you knew I was pregnant, you'd be even more devastated if something did. And of course, you know what happened after that," she added. "Kvar decided to heal the baby, who was actually in quite bad shape, hoping that the pain of childbirth would help my Cruxis crystal to evolve further. He was also quite hopeful that the baby would prove to be another viable test subject for the Angelus Project. A few months later I gave birth to a baby girl, Maritka," she explained, gesturing toward the girl that had been with her when Raine had discovered her.

"You mean… I have a daughter?" His eyes widened as a feeling of amazement overwhelmed him. He had another child!

"Yes, Kratos. She's a lot like you, too, very quiet, serious, thoughtful. I thought it was appropriate, since Lloyd was always more like me," she laughed softly. Then her demeanor switched back to a more serious one. "The birth process didn't evolve my Cruxis crystal as much as Kvar would have liked. Shortly after that, he and Forcystus were ordered to switch ranches; I heard something about Kvar's experience being needed to crush a rebellion near the Asgard ranch. Forcystus decided to let me keep the child, knowing that with the limited supply of food we were given, I would subject myself to harsh conditions in order to make sure that Maritka had as much food as she could get.

"During the following years, I got sick a lot, because I ate only what was absolutely necessary for my survival, giving the rest of my meager food allotment to Maritka, so she would grow properly. Each time I grew ill, my Cruxis crystal would evolve a little more. When Maritka grew old enough to understand, I told her about the Angelus project, and she began to refuse the additional food I would give her. I stopped getting sick, and the Cruxis crystal lay dormant for a long time."

She glanced at the baby again. "When Forcystus realized that my Cruxis crystal was no longer evolving as it should have, he grew angry. He began to try different things to make it evolve, but I never let myself get angry, and if the things he did caused me pain or suffering, I suppressed it, something I had taught myself to do over the years since I was recaptured. At last, he tried one more method…" Her voice trailed off as her throat choked up.

"W… what did he do to you?" Kratos asked, barely restraining his temper.

Anna looked down, this time _keeping_ her gaze on the baby. "Well… let's just say that several months later, Ryien was born," she murmured softly, her voice just barely above a whisper. Kratos could not restrain his temper, and the only thing that consoled him and kept him from turning around to seek revenge was the fact that he had just killed Forcystus himself.

"It's a good thing for him he's already dead… if I'd known of this before I killed him, his death would have been much more painful," he growled.

"Even after that, my Cruxis crystal did not evolve as Forcystus wished it too. Apparently I was the first with the ability to partially restrain the crystal on my own. If he had removed it, I would still have turned into a monster, but I could restrain the amount of my mana that reached it. I kept hoping, praying that you would find me." She looked up from the baby's face to her husband's, her eyes shining with happiness. "And you did," she murmured, smiling at him. "When I think that all my efforts resulted in being reunited with you and Lloyd, I don't mind what happened nearly as much," she admitted.

"I'm just glad that you are okay," Kratos said, feeling his heart swell with love and affection for his wife. He leaned over and pressed his lips against hers, reveling in the feeling of their first kiss in the last fourteen years.

"So am I," Anna replied softly after they pulled apart a few moments later, a gentle smile spreading across her happy face. They walked on, speeding up a little to catch up with the others as they both privately rejoiced at their being back together once more.

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